Parliament, Monday, 6 October 2025 – The Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) this week begins its oversight enquiry into the Road Accident Fund's (RAF) finances and governance.
The RAF, which falls under the Department of Transport, has been under scrutiny from SCOPA and other parliamentary committees since last year. For nearly a year, SCOPA has been demanding accurate and truthful information about the Fund’s finances but much of that information has either not been provided or has proven unreliable.
Now, after three months of preparation, the committee begins its formal enquiry this week. The process will start with orientation sessions for Members of the committee, so they can get a full picture of the current situation at RAF.
Presentations will be made by the Road Accident Fund, the Department of Transport, the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer, the Office of the Accountant-General, the Auditor-General of South Africa, and the Special Investigating Unit (SIU). These sessions will also include recommendations from the various institutions.
The following week, the enquiry will move into its next phase of hearing evidence from witnesses. The member-led process is expected to continue until mid-November, with the committee aiming to complete and adopt its final report by the end of November or early December. That report, along with the committee’s recommendations, will then be tabled before the National Assembly.
The enquiry will look into several issues that have plagued the RAF, including:
- The backlog of unpaid and rejected claims, and the inefficiencies in the claims process.
- Human resource challenges, including cases where employees have been suspended for years, some for over four years without resolution, leading to significant legal costs and continued salary payments.
- Allegations of corruption involving law firms and judges.
- Procurement practices, including the awarding of contracts for legal services, media and marketing services amounting to around R1 billion, security services, as well as property transactions.
SCOPA Chairperson, Mr Songezo Zibi, expressed gratitude to the public and stakeholders who responded to the committee’s earlier call for submissions.
“I would like to thank members of the public and affected stakeholders for making submissions to the committee,” he said. “We received just under 100 submissions, some running into hundreds of pages. Many were extremely useful as they helped us connect with people inside and outside the RAF and guided us in identifying witnesses and key lines of enquiry.”
Through this enquiry, SCOPA seeks to uncover the root causes of the RAF’s persistent financial problems and ensure accountability for how public funds are spent and managed.
The enquiry programme is as follows:
Date | Time | Agenda | Venue |
Tues, 7 October 2025 | 09h00 – 13h00 | Road Accident Fund | M514, Marks Building Parliament |
Wed, 8 October 2025 | 09h00 – 13h00 | Office of the Chief Procurement Officer | M514, Marks Building Parliament |
Fri, 10 October 2025 | 09h00 – 12h00 | Special Investigating Unit | Virtual |
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC ACCOUNTS, MR SONGEZO ZIBI.
For media enquiries, please contact the committee’s Media Officer:
Name: Ms Faith Ndenze
Parliamentary Communication Services
Cell: 081 377 0686
Email: fndenze@parliament.gov.za
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